WOMEN AND EQUALITIES

Legal Systems: Islam

Charles Walker: To ask the Ministers for Women and Equalities what discussions she has had with (a) the Secretary of State for Justice and (b) other interlocutors about the Law Society's inclusion of Sharia succession rules in its guidance and its compatibility with existing equalities legislation; and if she will make a statement.

Jo Swinson: The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, the right hon. Member for Epsom and Ewell (Chris Grayling) and I have not had any such discussions.
	This Government is committed to the protection and promotion of women’s rights. Sharia law has no jurisdiction in England and Wales and the Government has no intention of changing this position. Everyone, male or female, is equal before the law in this country.
	The practice note issued by The Law Society on 13 March 2014 gives guidance to solicitors preparing wills under the law of England and Wales. It is a fundamental principle of this law that testators are, by making a valid will, able to leave their property to whomsoever they wish, subject only to the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. The practice note does not and cannot change the law. The courts will continue to apply the law of England and Wales relating to the making of wills in exactly the same way as they did before the practice note was issued.

PRIME MINISTER

Clerk of the House

Peter Bottomley: To ask the Prime Minister when he expects to recommend to HM The Queen a person to be appointed Clerk of the House and Chief Executive of the House of Commons.

David Cameron: I refer my hon. Friend to the statement made by Mr Speaker on 1 September 2014, Official Report, column 1.

Middle East

Richard Burden: To ask the Prime Minister what meetings he has had with civil society or religious groups based in the UK which have discussed the situation in Israel and Palestine since 1 July 2014; which organisations he has met; and when each such meeting took place.

David Cameron: Details of my meetings with external organisations are published on a quarterly basis and are available on the gov.uk website.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Housing: Brighton

Simon Kirby: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what progress has been made on securing private sector funding for the New England House development in Brighton as part of the Greater Brighton City Deal; and if he will make a statement.

Greg Clark: As agreed in the Greater Brighton City Deal, the Greater Brighton Economic Board is currently working to secure private sector investment in the expansion of New England House.

Voting Behaviour: Young People

Tim Farron: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps he is taking to increase voter turnout in local elections among 18 to 25 year-olds.

Sam Gyimah: The Government is committed to maximising electoral registration to help support the highest possible turnout in elections. The introduction of online registration on 10 June in England and Wales makes it easier and more convenient for all, including young people, to register to vote.
	The Government has announced that all 363 local authorities and valuation joint boards in Great Britain and five national organisations, including UK Youth and the Scottish Youth Parliament, will be sharing £4.2 million aimed at ensuring every eligible person in the country is signed up to the electoral register and has their chance to vote.
	Recent changes to legislation have included provisions to support the earlier dispatch of postal votes, clearer and more modern forms and information for voters and changes to provisions at close of poll, which all support greater participation.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Clerk of the House

Peter Bottomley: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross representing the House of Commons Commission, 
	(1)  what the arrangements were for the selection of the recommended candidate to be Clerk of the House and Chief Executive on each of the last three occasions; and who was on the interviewing board in what capacity on each such occasion;
	(2)  pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Chelmsford of 19 June 2014, Official Report, column 725-6W, on Clerk of the House, who initiated the changes to the previous arrangements;
	(3)  whether Mr Speaker has a casting vote on the interviewing board for the selection of a recommended candidate to be Clerk of the House and Chief Executive.

John Thurso: holding answer 1 September 2014
	The composition of the panel for the recruitment of Sir Robert Rogers in 2011 was Mr Speaker, the then Leader of the House (Rt Hon Sir George Young), the then Shadow Leader (Rt Hon Hilary Benn), John Thurso MP, the Rt Hon Sir Alan Beith, the Rt Hon Lindsay Hoyle and Sheila Drew Smith. This was—on Mr Speaker’s initiative—the first time that a formal recruitment panel and process was followed.
	Selection panels were not held for appointing the Clerk of the House and Chief Executive in 2006 and 2003. On both occasions the retiring Clerk of the House recommended two names as potential successors and the then Mr Speaker decided which candidate to recommend.
	The changes in approach to recruitment in 2011, and subsequently in 2014, when the opportunity was opened up to both internal and external applicants, is in line with the House’s policy for fair and open competition in all House of Commons recruitment.
	The selection panel decided on the successful candidate by reaching a consensus. The Speaker was Chair of the panel, but did not have a casting vote.

Television

Ben Bradshaw: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, how much the House of Commons Commission spent on the purchase of televisions in (a) 2013 and (b) 2014 to date.

John Thurso: The House of Commons spent £159,771 in 2013 and £3,805 in 2014 to date on television screens which will enable the migration of Parliament’s Annunciator to a fully digital service.
	These screens replaced analogue-only screens that were at the end of their life with more energy efficient digital models. The new digital screens are 40% cheaper than the analogue sets that they replace. At the time of purchase a reduction in maintenance costs of around £22,000 over the lifetime of the sets and £15,000 reduction in energy cost across the Parliamentary Estate per annum was estimated.
	The upgrade to a digital only Annunciator Service has enabled an increase in channels available including live feeds from up to 16 Committee Rooms, plenary sessions of the devolved assemblies, a broader range of regional and international news channels and restoration of subtitles.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Correspondence

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether she has any plans to increase the number of replies within her Department's working day standard; and if she will make a statement.

Theresa Villiers: My Department endeavours to answer all correspondence within the required performance targets. According to last year's statistics my Department increased its response times by 21%.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Floods: Insurance

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will establish a scheme to provide affordable insurance cover for leasehold dwellings and small businesses in areas at high risk of flooding modelled on the existing Flood Re scheme for freehold dwellings.

Dan Rogerson: The Government has been advised by the insurance industry that those leaseholders in high risk areas who will not be eligible for Flood Re will still be able to access affordable insurance. Insurers will also continue to provide insurance to small businesses in areas of high flood risk on a competitive basis.
	Based on current evidence, Flood Re would not be an appropriate scheme for leasehold properties and small businesses in areas at a high risk of flooding.
	Government has separately commissioned research into the commercial insurance market as part of its evidence gathering.

Rabbits: Animal Welfare

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether she has any plans to introduce minimum welfare requirements for keeping pet rabbits.

George Eustice: The Animal Welfare Act provides a comprehensive legal framework for the welfare of pet animals such as rabbits. Therefore, we do not currently see a need for a statutory code of practice for rabbits. Owners and potential owners can obtain specific advice on the keeping of rabbits on request from rabbit welfare and other animal welfare organisations.

Ragwort

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many enforcement notices were served under the Weeds Act 1959 in respect of ragwort in each of the last three years; and to whom they were served in each such year.

Dan Rogerson: The number of enforcement notices served under the Weeds Act 1959 in 2013, 2012 and 2011 is as follows:
	
		
			  Enforcement notices served 
			 2011 42 
			 2012 36 
			 2013 37 
		
	
	Enforcement is a last resort and where possible we encourage communications between landowners and complainants to try and resolve the issue. In the vast majority of cases this approach is successful.
	The names of those who have been served with enforcement notices are withheld in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998.

Ragwort

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the code of practice on how to prevent the spread of ragwort published in July 2004.

Dan Rogerson: We have not assessed the effectiveness of the Code of Practice. We are, however, continuing to review our policy on ragwort, including a review of the current evidence to ensure that we minimise the risk of injury to horses and other grazing livestock. This work will highlight what changes, if any, might be needed to the Code of Practice.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Empty Property: Greater London

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many properties in each London borough were classified as empty in each year since 2010.

Stephen Williams: Statistics on vacant dwellings in England by local authority district are published in the Department’s live table 615 which is available at the following link.
	https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-dwelling-stock-including-vacants
	It gives annual total numbers of empty homes and those vacant longer than six months and also vacants in the local authority, housing association and other public sector tenures.
	The following table provides information on all vacants for individual London boroughs for the last four years. It is a clear sign that the Government’s approach to reducing empty homes is working.
	
		
			 Table 1: All vacant dwellings, London boroughs, London and England, 4 October 2010 to 7 October 20131, 2 
			  4 October 2010 3 October 2011 1 October 2012 7 October 2013 
			      
			 England 737,147 719,352 704,357 635,127 
			 London 79,971 74,310 72,101 59,313 
			 City of London 131 88 89 107 
			 Barking and Dagenham 1,570 1,578 1,631 1,484 
			 Barnet 3,679 3,201 3,016 2,549 
			 Bexley 1,755 1,971 2,282 1,271 
			 Brent 2,350 2,370 2,328 1,130 
			 Bromley 3,517 3,320 3,190 2,653 
			 Camden 2,883 2,868 2,867 2,804 
			 Croydon 3,608 3,638 3,606 2,846 
			 Ealing 2,698 2,437 2,374 2,535 
			 Enfield 2,562 2,522 2,532 2,224 
			 Greenwich 3,234 3,416 2,412 2,049 
			 Hackney 3,064 3,180 2,255 2,227 
		
	
	
		
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 1,922 1,946 2,129 988 
			 Haringey 1,907 1,752 2,072 1,435 
			 Harrow 1,215 1,214 1,277 1,009 
			 Havering 2,507 2,387 2,315 1,890 
			 Hillingdon 1,838 1,670 1,592 1,715 
			 Hounslow 1,601 1,164 992 1,788 
			 Islington 1,860 1,851 1,608 1,580 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 2,657 2,624 3,031 2,509 
			 Kingston upon Thames 2,122 1,404 1,179 999 
			 Lambeth 4,290 3,591 3,395 2,190 
			 Lewisham 2,540 2,355 2,253 1,894 
			 Merton 1,684 1,649 1,755 1,190 
			 Newham 2,904 2,470 2,141 1,971 
			 Redbridge 2,186 1,926 2,011 1,513 
			 Richmond upon Thames 1,380 1,363 1,640 1,449 
			 Southwark 3,367 2,679 2,645 2,668 
			 Sutton 2,009 2,070 1,848 1,874 
			 Tower Hamlets 2,940 2,391 2,317 1,588 
			 Waltham Forest 2,131 1,870 1,908 1,338 
			 Wandsworth 1,643 1,586 1,869 1,472 
			 Westminster 4,217 3,759 3,542 2,374 
			 1 DCLG Table 615 All vacant dwellings by local authority district, England https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-dwelling-stock-including-vacants 2 Data for council tax base purposes are not taken on the same date every year and can vary slightly from year to year. The dates to which the figures relate for each year are given in the table at the top of each column.

Housing: Greater London

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many children were recorded as living in overcrowded housing in each London borough in each year since 2010;
	(2)  how many people were recorded as living in overcrowded housing in each London borough in each of the year since 2010.

Brandon Lewis: My Department does not record or collect the information requested at London borough level.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Buildings

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will review his departmental estate in order to reduce costs; and if he will make a statement.

Helen Grant: I am pleased to say that the Department has been making strong progress to date on the delivery of efficiency commitments made at Spending Review 2010 and Spending Round 2013—which included reviewing the Department's estate. The move last financial year to 100 Parliament Street and share space with HM Customs and Revenue is delivering savings of around £2 million a year savings from 2013-14.
	Since 2010-11 expenditure on the Department’s estate has declined from £8,533,000 to a forecast cost for this financial year (2014-15) of £4,930,000—a saving since 2010-11 of £3.6 million per annum. We continue to look for savings and bear down on all unnecessary expenditure.

Local Broadcasting: Television

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions he has had with the BBC Trust on accounting for the BBC's contribution to spending on local television.

Edward Vaizey: I have had no discussions with the BBC Trust on accounting for the BBC's contribution to spending on local television. DCMS officials are regularly in contact with the Trust on a range of topics, including local television.

National Lottery: Scotland

Frank Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much the National Lottery Distribution Fund has allocated to each parliamentary constituency in Scotland in the last five years.

Helen Grant: Lottery distributors do not allocate their funding on a constituency basis. While they are required to ensure that Lottery funding is available to all areas and all sections of society, they make their funding decisions based on an assessment of applications submitted to each of their separate funding streams. A database of all Lottery grants is compiled by DCMS from data supplied by the various Lottery distributors. The database is available at:
	http://www.lottery.culture.gov.uk/Search.aspx
	and is searchable in a variety of ways, including by constituency.

Procurement

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much and what proportion of his Department's budget was spent on activities which were contracted out in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11, (c) 2011-12, (d) 2012-13 and (e) 2013-14; and how much and what proportion of his Department's budget he expects to be contracted out in 2014-15.

Helen Grant: The proportion of the Department’s budget spent on contracted-out activities is as follows-Financial Year Contracted-out expenditure £000 Actuals Proportion of contracted-out expenditure to Budget Actuals 2009-10 26,218 48% 2010-11 24,165 46% 2011-12 24,774 40% 2012-13 20,493 28% 2013-14 22,428 40% Forecast Forecast 2014-15 23,000 50% Figures for 2013-14 and 2014-15 include the Government Equalities Office.

Radio Frequencies

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the potential effect on (a) schools and (b) universities of loss of access by wireless microphone users to the 700 MHz band of radio spectrum; and if she will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: Ofcom published a consultation on the future use of the 700 MHz band on 28 May 2014. This consultation assesses the impact any loss of access to the 700 MHz band would have on the PMSE community. Ofcom will ensure the views and spectrum requirements of the PMSE community are taken into account when making any final decisions on the use of the band. The consultation document and responses can be found on Ofcom's website:
	http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/700MHz/
	Ofcom is working with the PMSE community of users and manufacturers to mitigate the impact of any change of use of the 700 MHz band; and discussing with the regulatory authorities in other countries their approach to this issue. A key focus of their work in this area is seeking to identify and make available alternative spectrum for the PMSE community.

Tourism: Lancashire

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how often Lancashire has specifically been featured in his Department's overseas promotion of tourism in the UK in the last four years.

Helen Grant: Lancashire features strongly in VisitBritain's marketing activity on their consumer website. Lancashire is also featured in a number of the GREAT Britain Campaign pillar guides for journalists including the Golf Coast via Sport is GREAT, the Ribble Valley Food Trail via Food is GREAT and Carnforth, as the location of the film Brief Encounters, under Culture is GREAT. Blackpool features prominently via VisitBritain's video portal and on their consumer website. This promotional activity is paying dividends with 253,000 inbound visits to the region in 2013 spending £143 million in the county. This compares to 239,000 and £105 million in 2012.

HEALTH

Correspondence

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has any plans to increase the number of replies within his Department's working day standard; and if he will make a statement.

Daniel Poulter: The Department is strongly committed to replying to correspondence within its 18 working day target. In 2013, the Department responded to nearly 50,000 items of correspondence from hon. Members, peers and members of the public, 98% of which were answered within 18 working days.

EU Law

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times the UK has lost EU infraction proceedings since May 2010 which relate to matters that fall within his Department's responsibility.

Jane Ellison: The United Kingdom has never been fined for an infraction.

General Dental Council

Paul Beresford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions his Department has had with the General Dental Council on its proposal to increase the annual retention fee by 64 per cent; and what his Department's response is to that proposal. [R]

Daniel Poulter: No formal discussions have taken place with the General Dental Council (GDC) on their proposal to increase the annual retention fee.
	The GDC is an independent body and it is therefore for the GDC Council to determine the level of the annual fee it charges for registration. The proposed fee increase is subject to public consultation where the GDC’s case will be scrutinised. The Department does not usually contribute to such consultations but all professional regulators, including the GDC, are aware of the Department’s position on registration fees. In February 2011, the Government published Enabling Excellence, which states that we would not expect registration fees to increase beyond their current levels, unless there is a clear and robust business case that any increase is essential to ensure the exercise of statutory duties.
	In my role as Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Health I have regular contact with regulators on a whole range of issues and I have a meeting scheduled with the GDC in September.

General Practitioners

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2014, Official Report, column 664-5W, on general practitioners, how many GPs (a) excluding retainers and registrars and (b) including retainers but excluding registrars there were on 1 September 2009.

Daniel Poulter: Information is not available for 1 September 2009. The following table shows figures for 30 September 2009.
	
		
			 Number of general practitioners (GPs) by headcount and full time equivalent, 30 September 2009 
			  Headcount Full time equivalent 
			 All practitioners 40,269 36,085 
			 Excluding registrars and retainers 35,917 32,111 
		
	
	
		
			 Excluding registrars 36,388 32,426 
			 Notes: 1. Figures exclude GP Locums. 2. Data as at 30 September as data for 1 September is not available. 3. Data Quality: The Health and Social Care Information Centre seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data but responsibility for data accuracy lies with the organisations providing the data. Methods are continually being updated to improve data quality. Where changes impact on figures already published, this is assessed but unless it is significant at national level figures are not changed. Source: The Health and Social Care Information Centre General and Personal Medical Services Statistics

General Practitioners: South West

Gary Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure that there are sufficient GPs to fill vacancies in surgeries in Devon and Cornwall.

Daniel Poulter: The Department set up Health Education England (HEE) to deliver a better health and healthcare work force for England. HEE is responsible for ensuring a secure work force supply for the future balancing need against demand, taking into account factors such as the age profile of the existing work force, the impact of technology, and new drugs.
	The Department has recognised the need to increase the general practitioner (GP) work force and between September 2010 and September 2013, the number of full-time equivalent GPs has risen by 1,051. Additionally, the Department has included in the HEE mandate a requirement that “HEE will ensure that 50% of trainees completing foundation level training enter GP training programmes by 2016”.
	Further work is being undertaken by HEE to improve applications and fill rate in to GP training to support the mandate target of 3,250 appointments into GP training by 2016 in England. This includes a review of the GP recruitment process, developing a pre-GP year to give exposure to prospective GP applicants of the specialty and careers advice for foundation doctors and medical students.
	In recognition of the contribution the GP work force makes in the national health service, HEE will also undertake additional work on GP recruitment and retention, return to practice and reducing attrition rates, all of which will play a part in increasing the GP work force.

Health: Males

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the potential of the Men's Sheds movement to have a positive impact on health and wellbeing.

Norman Lamb: The Department has not made a specific assessment of the potential of the Men's Sheds movement. The Department welcomes the positive impact that community-based schemes like this can have in helping to combat loneliness and isolation. The effect that loneliness and isolation have on health and well-being is an important factor in government policy.

HIV Infection: Screening

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to implement a national screening plan for HIV.

Jane Ellison: Recommendations for human immuno- deficiency virus (HIV) screening and testing are made by a number of bodies including Public Health England, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the UK Chief Medical Officer’s Expert Advisory Group on AIDS, the UK National Screening Committee (UKNSC), and professional organisations such as the British HIV Association and the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV.
	At present there is a national antenatal screening programme which offers screening to all pregnant women. NICE guidelines for groups at increased risk of HIV include a recommendation on HIV testing in primary and secondary care in areas of higher prevalence. In addition, HIV testing is offered to all attendees of genitourinary medicine clinics.
	The UKNSC is commissioning a review of the evidence for a universal screening programme in adults. The Committee hopes to be in a position to consult on the review in early 2015. In addition, NICE is in the process of reviewing its guidance relating to testing in men who have sex with men and black African communities.

ICT

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many iPads and iPhones have been purchased by (a) his Department, (b) Public Health England and (c) each of his Department's non-departmental public bodies since May 2010; and what the cost of such purchases has been.

Daniel Poulter: Information about the number of iPads and iPhones procured by the Department and the Department's non-departmental public bodies is available in the following table, broken down by financial years.
	
		
			 Organisation iPADs iPAD cost (£) iPhones iPhone cost (£) 
			 Department of Health (Costs Exclude VAT)     
			 2011-12 63 25,467.00 0 0 
			 2012-13 0 0 1 357.00 
			 2013-14 25 10,106.00 0 0 
			 2014-15 3 1,155.00 2 750.00 
			      
			 Care Quality Commission     
			 2011-12 40 42,173 2 £405 
			 2012-13 41 18,528 0 0 
			 2013-14 47 20,234 0 0 
			 2014-15 73 32,571 0 0 
			      
			 Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority 0 0 0 0 
			      
			 Health and Social Care Information Centre     
			 2013-14 1 385.00 116 26,625.00 
			 2014-15 4 1,540.00 40 8,075.00 
			      
			 Human Tissue Authority 0 0 0 0 
			      
			 Monitor (Costs include VAT)     
			 2011-12 0 0 0 0 
			 2012-13 14 10,500.00 0 0 
			 2013-14 40 30,500.00 0 0 
			 2014-15 31 11,900.00 2 700.00 
			      
			 NHS England (Costs include VAT)     
			 2011-12 N    
			 2012-13 115 86,250.00 400 177,600.00 
			 2013-14 100 46,200.00 1762 808,590.00 
			 2014-15 50 23,100.00 150 68,400.00 
			      
			 National Institute for Health and Care Excellence     
			 2010-11 1 459.00 1 415 
		
	
	
		
			 2011-12 0 0 0 0 
			 2012-13 5 1,995.73 0 0 
			 2013-14 3 846.93 0 0 
			 2014-15 0 0 0 0 
			      
			 Public Health England     
			 2013-14 274 (includes some devices brought with staff from sender organisations) Total costs 102,000.00 for 2013-14 and 2014-15 to date 1,862 Total costs 512,000.00 for 2013-14 and 2014-15 to date 
			 2014-15 30  38

Intensive Care

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average daily cost is of keeping a patient in an intensive care unit.

Daniel Poulter: The information is shown in the following table. It is from reference costs, which are the average unit costs to national health service trusts and foundation trusts of providing defined services in a given financial year to NHS patients. Reference costs for acute care are collected by health care resource groups (HRGs), which are standard groupings of clinically similar treatments that consume similar levels of health care resource. HRGs for critical care, which are organised into neonatal, paediatric and adult critical care, represent the daily cost of the part of the patient’s stay that requires care in a designated critical care bed. Adult critical care is further differentiated into burns, spinal injuries, and all other critical care units. The HRGs cover critical care areas, such as an intensive therapy unit or high dependency unit, but may include temporary, non-standard locations.
	
		
			 Average daily cost of critical care in England, 2012-13 
			  Average unit cost per day (£) 
			 Neonatal critical care 645 
			 Paediatric critical care 1,494 
			 Adult critical care: burns intensive care units 1,984 
			 Adult critical care: spinal injury intensive care units 887 
			 Adult critical care: all other adult critical care units 1,168 
			 Source: Reference costs, Department of Health

Meningitis

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many intensive care places in the UK have been occupied by Meningitis B patients since January 2013.

Jane Ellison: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available for England is shown in the following table. Information for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is a matter for the devolved Administrations.
	
		
			 Number of critical care periods and critical care bed days with a primary diagnosis of meningitis for the period April 2013-March 2014 (provisional data) 
			 Diagnosis Critical care periods Critical care bed days 
			 Viral meningitis 22 72 
			 Bacterial meningitis 238 1,572 
			 Other/unspecified causes 56 317 
			 Occurring in another disease 110 653 
			 Notes: 1. Meningococcal B disease is caused by the bacteria Neisseria meningitidis. Information on usage of critical care beds resulting from meningococcal B disease is not separately identifiable. Information on meningococcal septicaemia has not been provided. 2. The data provided covers English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector. 3. The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 diagnosis fields in the Hospital Episode Statistics data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital. 4. The following International Classification of Disease (ICD)-10 codes have been used to define meningitis: A87 Viral meningitis G00 Bacterial meningitis, not elsewhere classified G03 Meningitis due to other and unspecified causes G01.X* Meningitis in bacterial diseases classified elsewhere (in the 1st or 2nd position) G02* Meningitis in other infectious and parasitic disease classified elsewhere (in the 1st or 2nd position) Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre

Meningitis

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of Meningitis B there have been in the UK since January 2013; and in how many such cases individuals have (a) died, (b) required amputation of limbs, (c) become blind, (d) become deaf and (e) contracted other central nervous system complications as a result of Meningitis B.

Jane Ellison: There were 667 laboratory confirmed cases of invasive meningococcal B disease in England from January 2013 to March 2014, which is the latest available information.
	There were 40 deaths registered in England in 2013 in which the underlying cause was meningococcal infection. Data about deaths from meningococcal B infection are not separately available. Information on deaths for 2014 will be available in July 2015.
	Information on complications associated with invasive meningococcal B disease is not routinely collected as part of meningococcal surveillance. Many of the complications continue to develop, evolve and be tested after the diagnosis is confirmed, especially long-term complications such as behaviour, communication or memory problems, and, therefore, cannot be collected in real-time.
	The most robust and comprehensive data on long-term complications following meningococcal B disease in children in England is in a recent study published in The Lancet Neurology in 2012, a copy of which has been placed in the Library.
	Information for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is a matter for the devolved Administrations.

Meningitis: Vaccination

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the Bexsero vaccine is licensed for (a) individual application and (b) use in conjunction with other vaccines.

George Freeman: Bexsero, a Meningococcal group B vaccine, was licensed for the active immunisation of individuals from two months of age and older against invasive meningococcal disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis group B. It can be administered individually or concomitantly with a number of other vaccine antigens, either as monovalent or as combination vaccines such as diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis, Haemophilus influenzae type b, inactivated poliomyelitis, hepatitis B, heptavalent pneumococcal conjugate, measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella. When given concomitantly with other vaccines Bexsero must be administered at a separate injection site.

Meningitis: Vaccination

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health at what age babies will be eligible for vaccination with the Bexsero vaccine.

Jane Ellison: The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has recommended that there should be a carefully planned national meningococcal B immunisation programme for infants, using a three dose schedule of Bexsero®(at two, four and 12 months of age), subject to the vaccine being available at a cost-effective price .
	The JCVI has also advised that when the programme starts there should be a one-off, opportunistic catch-up programme for babies aged three and four months of age who would have not had the opportunity to receive the vaccine at two months of age.

Mental Health

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will meet with the author of Mindfulness in Clinician Therapeutic Relationships to discuss the ways in which mindfulness-based practices can be disseminated to NHS staff for the purposes of improving staff well-being and patient care;
	(2)  if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the article Mindfulness in Clinician Therapeutic Relationships by Razzaque et al. published in the Journal Mindfulness, Volume 4, September 2013; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Lamb: The Department does recognise the importance of mindfulness for improving staff well-being and patient care, which is discussed in the article Mindfulness in Clinician Therapeutic Relationships.
	The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidance for the national health service has recommended mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) for recurrent depression since 2004. MBCT is available through a number of improving access to psychological therapy services in England.
	Health Education England (HEE) supports the delivery of excellent health care and health improvement to the patients and public of England, by ensuring that our workforce has the right numbers, skills, values and behaviours. The Government has mandated HEE to provide national leadership on education, training and workforce development in the NHS.
	HEE has established a mental health advisory group to promote and enhance mental health training across the professions and provide strategic professional advice and expertise to HEE around its work on workforce planning and education development for mental health. Membership representation of this group includes; health care, social care, third sectors and professional bodies. HEE have been advised of the article Mindfulness in Clinician Therapeutic Relationships and to consider it in terms of workforce planning.

Mental Health Services: Children

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate he has made of the number of local authorities who have or who plan to (a) reduce, (b) freeze, (c) increase spending on child and adolescent mental health in (i) 2013-14 and (ii) 2014-15.

Norman Lamb: The Department has made no such estimate since information on expenditure by local authorities is not held centrally; however, a report launched on 21 June 2014 by the mental health charity, Young Minds, based on freedom of information requests suggests that there appears to have been some disinvestment in child and adolescent mental health services at a local level in some areas, and an increase in other areas.

Mental Health Services: Children

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on providing psychiatric support for children aged (a) four to 11 and (b) 11 to 18-years-old.

Norman Lamb: The Secretary of State for Health, the right hon. Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt), has had no such discussions. However the Department of Health shares with the Department for Education overall responsibility for promoting the mental health and emotional well-being of children of school age. The Secretary of State for Health plans to meet the new Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Loughborough (Nicky Morgan), to discuss this important issue.

Mental Health Services: Out of Area Treatment

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people referred for mental health care received out-of-area treatment from Mid Yorkshire Hospitals trust; and how many such people were (a) children and (b) adults.

Norman Lamb: This information is not collected centrally.

Palliative Care

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to improve the support that people at the end of life receive so that they can die in their preferred place of care.

Norman Lamb: The Government is committed to expanding choice in end-of-life care by supporting people's preferences about how to have a good death. On 1 July 2014, we announced a review of choice in end-of-life care led by Claire Henry, chief executive of the National Council for Palliative Care.
	The Programme Board leading this work consists of representatives from charities, people with personal experience of end-of-life care (including carers), clinicians and policy makers. The review will undertake extensive public consultation to define what people want in end-of-life services, and will provide advice to the Government on the policy initiatives required to enable people's preferences to be met. This advice will be provided by early next year.

Roads: Horses

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the cost to the (a) emergency services and (b) NHS of dealing with injuries arising from wild horses on road in the latest period for which figures are available.

Daniel Poulter: This information is not held centrally and no estimate has been made.

Sunbeds

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will bring in legislative proposals to (a) require that sunbeds should be supervised, (b) limit access to sunbeds for repeat customers and (c) obligate the display of health warnings;
	(2)  what steps his Department plans to take in response to the recommendations of the publication of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Skin's inquiry into sunbed regulation in England in May 2014; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: The Department has noted the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Skin's report on sunbed regulation in England and is considering the recommendations carefully.

Wheelchairs

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the agreed assessment for, and supply of, wheelchair needs will remain within the remit of the NHS; and if he will introduce national criteria and standards for those assessments.

Norman Lamb: The commissioning of wheelchair services will remain within the remit of the national health service. NHS England and clinical commissioning groups are responsible for commissioning specialised and non-specialised wheelchair services respectively. It is the responsibility of these commissioning organisations to agree the criteria and standards for assessment with their wheelchair service providers. There are no plans to introduce national criteria and standards for assessments of wheelchair needs.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total value of payouts to armed forces veterans and their families under the Armed Forces Pension Scheme as a result of service in Afghanistan has been in each year since 2010.

Anna Soubry: It is not possible to provide the value of payouts made to Armed Forces veterans and their families under the Armed Forces Pension Scheme as a result of service in Afghanistan as the information is not held in a format that would enable us to easily answer the question and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
	The AFPS is primarily an occupational pension scheme, the Pensions Computer system does not identify the conflicts in which Service Personnel have served.

Afghanistan

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total value of payouts to armed forces veterans and their families under the War Pensions Scheme as a result of service in Afghanistan has been in each year since 2010.

Anna Soubry: It is not possible to provide the value of payouts made to Armed Forces veterans and their families under the War Pensions Scheme as a result of service in Afghanistan as the information is not held in a format that would enable us to easily answer the question and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Air Travel

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on what occasions each Minister within his Department has taken domestic flights on official business since May 2010.

Julian Brazier: This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Details of all ministerial overseas travel is published on a quarterly basis.

Armed Forces: Injuries

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the value of payouts under the Armed Forces Pensions Scheme to forces personnel and veterans on the grounds of physical injuries has been in each year since 2010.

Anna Soubry: It is not possible to provide the value of payouts under the Armed Forces Pension Scheme (AFPS) to forces personnel and veterans on the grounds of physical injuries as the information requested is not held in a format that would enable us to easily answer the question and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
	The AFPS is primarily an occupational pension scheme where pension payments may be enhanced where a Service person is medically discharged with a condition caused by Service. The Pension scheme computer system does not hold details of the medical condition for which the enhanced pension is being paid.

Armed Forces: Mental Illness

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the value of payouts under the Armed Forces Pensions Scheme to forces personnel and veterans on the grounds of mental ill health has been in each year since 2010.

Anna Soubry: It is not possible to provide the value of payouts under the Armed Forces Pension Scheme (AFPS) to forces personnel and veterans on the grounds of mental ill health as the information requested is not held in a format that would enable us to easily answer the question and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The AFPS is primarily an occupational pension scheme where pension payments may be enhanced where a service person is medically discharged with a condition caused by service. The pension scheme computer system does not hold details of the medical condition for which the enhanced pension is being paid.

Armed Forces: Mental Illness

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the value of pay outs under the War Pensions Scheme to forces personnel and veterans on the grounds of mental ill health has been in each year since 2010.

Anna Soubry: It is not possible to provide the total value of payouts under the War Pensions Scheme to forces personnel and veterans on the grounds of mental ill health as the information is not held in a format that would enable us to easily answer the question and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	However, between 2011-12 and 2013-14 there were a total of 1,655 awards made under the War Pension Scheme for a mental health condition related to service.

Armed Forces: Pensions

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total value of payouts to armed forces veterans and their families under the Armed Forces Pension scheme has been in each year since 2010.

Anna Soubry: The total expenditure to armed forces veterans and their families under the Armed Forces Pension Scheme each year since 2010 has been:
	
		
			  £ million 
			 2010-11 3,519 
			 2011-12 3,811 
			 2012-13 4,071 
			 2013-14 4,089

Armed Forces: Pensions

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the guideline period is in which an application for an armed forces pension should be (a) processed and (b) delivered; and how many applications have exceeded that guideline period to date.

Anna Soubry: The guideline period in which an application for an armed forces pension should be processed and delivered is:
	“Awards are to be calculated, authorised and payment instructions established for entitled individuals within 10 working days of the termination date or receipt of all documentation, whichever is the later. Only one application exceeded that guideline period for the year 2013-14, with none this year to end July 2014”.

Army: Training

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total cost was of each successfully trained recruit of (a) Phase 1 and 2 training at ITC Catterick, (b) Phase 1 training at ATC Pirbright, (c) Phase 1 training at ATR Bassingbourn and (d) Phase 1 training at AFC Harrogate including trainee salaries and associated costs in the most recent years for which figures are available.

Mark Francois: The total cost of a successful recruit at each establishment, based on their respective output, is as follows:
	ITC Catterick: £33,706
	ATC Pirbright: £20,253
	ATR Bassingbourn: £24,187
	AFC Harrogate: £68,751.
	This is based on full costs to the Army’s budget for 2013-14, and does not include infrastructure and equipment costs as these are managed collectively across a number of sites and equipment fleets and cannot be attributed to individual units. The cost for ATR Bassingbourn is based on costs for 2012-13 as this was the last year that Phase 1 training was carried out at that location.
	All Junior Entry recruits undertake their initial training at AFC Harrogate. They are provided with highly valuable vocational training opportunities which result in some 85% leaving initial training with Level 2 qualifications in literacy and numeracy. The greater length of service of Junior Entry personnel results in the Army having to recruit and train fewer personnel. This training contributes not only to individual development, but to society in the long term.

Pay

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which organisations collect subscriptions through the employers' payroll service in his Department and its agencies.

Julian Brazier: The following list details organisations that currently receive voluntary subscriptions via the armed forces and Ministry of Defence civilian payrolls.
	MOD Civilian Payroll
	AEA Recreational Society
	Alpha Healthclub
	AXA Sun Life Assurance Soc Ltd
	Beneden Healthcare Soc
	Birmingham Hos Sat FD BHCA
	Boscombe Down Death Ben Fund
	BUPA Mercia Health Benefits
	Civil Service Benevolent Fund
	Civil Service Club
	Civil Service Sports Council
	Civil Service Sports Fund (NE)
	Clyde Sub Base Dependant Fund
	Combined Benefit Services
	CPAX Family
	CPAX Individual
	DSRA Lottery
	Forester Health BHCA
	Give As You Earn
	Health Scheme Hull
	Health Shield Hos Fnd BHCA
	Health sure Portfolio BHCA
	Hospital Saturday Fund
	HSA Health Insurance
	Leeds Hospital BHCA
	Merseyside Health Ben BHCA
	Midland Society for the Blind
	MOD Liverpool Rec Society
	MOD Police Lottery
	PAT Aid Wolverhampton BHCA
	Police Mutual Society
	Premier Health Benefits BHCA
	Prov Hos Serv Bedford BHCA
	Simply Health
	Sovereign Accident Plan
	Sovereign Health Plan
	Stafford Civil Ben Fund
	The Army Dependant’s Trust
	TSB Portsmouth
	TU Soc Dependant Fund Rosyth
	UK CS Benefit Society
	Welsh Hosp Health Srv Assoc
	West Prov Health Ser BHCA
	Westfield Cont Health Schm
	Deductions to Trade Unions
	Defence Police Federation
	General Municipal Boilermakers and Allied Trades Trade Union
	National Union of RMT workers
	Public and Commercial Services Trade Union
	PROSPECT
	UNITE
	Union of Construction and Allied trades and technicians
	Armed Forces Payroll
	1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards
	9th/12th Royal Lancers
	ADAT (73,88 &Gurkha)
	Adjutant General’s Corps
	Army Air Corps Fund
	Army Dependants Trust
	Army Physical Training Corps Association
	Army Sports Lottery
	Coldstream Guards
	Corps of Army Music
	Corps of Royal Electrical &Mechanical Engineers
	Corps of Royal Engineers
	Forces Safeguard and Spouse
	Give As You Earn
	Grenadier Guards
	Gurkha Welfare Trust
	Intelligence Corps Association
	Irish Guards
	Military Provost Staff Corps Association
	N-Trust
	PAX
	Queen Alexandra’s Royal Army Nursing Corps
	RAF Benevolent Fund
	RAF Dependants Fund
	RAF DINCOME (Pre 90 & Post 90)
	RAF Sports Lottery
	RM Corps OT CUI CSM Funds
	RN Charities
	RN Sports Lottery
	Royal Army Chaplains Department
	Royal Army Dental Corps
	Royal Army Medical Corps
	Royal Army Veterinary Corps
	Royal Corps of Signals
	Royal Military Police
	Royal Regiment of Artillery
	Royal Tank Regiment
	Scots Guards
	Scottish Widows (Stakeholder’s Pension Scheme)
	Small Arms School Corps Comrades Association
	Sodexho Childcare Vouchers
	Sterling Life Insurance
	The Blues and Royals
	The Cheshire Regiment
	The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment
	The King’s Royal Hussars
	The Life Guards Association
	The Light Dragoons
	The Mercian Regiment
	The Parachute Regiment
	The Princess of Wales’ Royal Regt
	The Queen’s Royal Hussars
	The Queen’s Royal Lancers
	The Rifles
	The Royal Anglian Regiment
	The Royal Dragoon Guards
	The Royal Irish Regiment
	The Royal Logistic Corps
	The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers
	The Royal Regt of Scotland Regimental Assn
	The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards
	The Royal Welsh
	The Staffordshire Regiment
	The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters
	The Yorkshire Regiment
	Voluntary Sports Subscriptions
	Welsh Guards
	Note
	MOD civilian Payroll subscriptions listed may not include all subscriptions made via all Agency and Trading Fund payrolls.

Special Forces

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Special Forces personnel there were in each regiment in each year since 2010.

Julian Brazier: It is the long standing policy of Her Majesty’s Government to not ordinarily comment on UK Special Forces.

War Pensions

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total value of payouts to armed forces veterans and their families under the War Pensions Scheme has been in each year since 2010.

Anna Soubry: The total expenditure to Armed Forces veterans and their families under the War Pensions Scheme in each year since 2010 has been:
	
		
			  £ million 
			 2010-11 935 
			 2011-12 916 
			 2012-13 908 
			 2013-14 859

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Iraq

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to encourage the Iraq government to sign the Ministry of Justice's draft Prison Transfer Agreement.

Tobias Ellwood: Officials at our embassy in Baghdad remain in discussion with the Government of Iraq about a UK-Iraq prisoner transfer agreement. Negotiations are at an advanced stage and we continue to work to conclude these as soon as possible.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Jackson Square Aviation

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when conducting due diligence on Jackson Square Aviation and JSA International Holdings LP, when and where UK Export Finance met representatives of that company.

Matthew Hancock: In the normal course of business, UK Export Finance will often meet with parties in connection with the exports it is asked to support or has provided support. UK Export Finance has met with representatives from JSA International Holdings LP on a number of occasions in the last three years in relation to support provided for the export of Airbus aircraft in 2011 and 2012. To identify the precise number and location of meetings would involve disproportionate cost. No support has been provided to JSA since 2012.

New Businesses

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to support employed people who wish to start their own business.

Matthew Hancock: Small businesses are vital to the economy and this Government is supporting people to start up a business in a number of ways.
	The website
	www.greatbusiness.gov.uk
	provides general support and advice for entrepreneurs starting out; specific support available in Northern Ireland is available at
	www.investni.com
	We recognise that a key issue for many start-ups is accessing affordable finance. The British Business Bank recently published “The Business Finance Guide: A Journey from Start-Up to Growth” which is available on the British Business Bank Website. It is a unique guide that sets out the main things to consider and outlines sources of finance available to businesses-ranging from start-ups to growing businesses.
	For those looking for start up finance and advice there are Start-Up Loans: 24 loans worth over £100,000 have been drawn down in Belfast since the scheme began in 2012.

Regional Growth Fund

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many winning bidders under the Regional Growth Fund in each (a) bidding round and (b) region have withdrawn to date.

Greg Clark: A full breakdown of the number of withdrawn awards by Round and Region is included in the table.
	
		
			  Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 Grand total 
			 East Midlands 2 1 4 3 0 10 
			 East of England 0 0 1 0 0 1 
			 Nationwide 0 0 1 1 0 2 
			 North East 8 12 11 2 1 34 
			 North West 3 8 5 7 1 24 
			 South East 1 1 0 6 1 9 
			 South West 1 2 1 3 0 7 
			 West Midlands 2 7 4 3 0 16 
			 Yorkshire and The Humber 2 7 3 1 0 13 
		
	
	
		
			 Grand Total 19 38 30 26 3 116

Students: Loans

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will take steps to increase maintenance loans for university accommodation in respect of (a) students in places with expensive accommodation costs and (b) other students.

Greg Clark: The Government announced an increase of 3.34% to maximum maintenance loans for the 2015/16 academic year earlier this year. This increase will apply to all rates of maintenance loan, including the higher rate loan for students living away from home and studying in London, where living costs (including those for accommodation) are generally higher.
	Decisions on student support arrangements for higher education courses are taken on an annual basis. The Government will review student support arrangements for the 2016/17 academic year in 2015.

Tax Avoidance

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether UK Export Finance takes steps not to support companies which use complex artificial tax structures to adopt aggressive tax positions.

Matthew Hancock: UK Export Finance’s statutory function is to support UK exports. It has no powers to investigate the tax affairs of the exporters it supports and no regulatory remit. However, it undertakes due diligence in respect of the financial and legal risks associated with all the export transactions it is asked to support.

UK Export Finance

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether Export UK Finance liaises with Government departments when conducting due diligence on partner companies.

Matthew Hancock: In order to carry out the appropriate due diligence, UK Export Finance communicates with other Government Departments as necessary regarding export transactions it is asked to support.

UK Export Finance

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether UK Export Finance investigates links between politicians in the UK and companies in the UK and their partner companies abroad as part of its due diligence procedure.

Matthew Hancock: UK Export Finance undertakes due diligence in respect of parties directly connected to export transactions it is asked to support. UK Export Finance also complies with the OECD ‘Recommendation on Bribery and Officially Supported Export Credits’, which requires export credit agencies to put measures in place to avoid supporting exports which may be tainted by bribery.

TREASURY

M6 (Link to M54)

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans his Department has for future funding for a new M6 south road link to the M54.

Danny Alexander: In last year’s Spending Round I provided the Highways Agency with a long-term funding settlement that committed to treble the level of investment in major enhancements to our strategic road network by 2020-21. This marks the start of the biggest programme of investment in our roads since the 1970’s.
	As part of that package I committed to fund the M54 to M6/M6 Toll Link Road subject to finalising options and agreement being reached on developer contributions. The Highways Agency are progressing this work and will update you on its progress in due course.

Alcoholic Drinks

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his Department's policy is on alcohol consumption on the premises (a) in general and (b) during parties in his Private Office.

Andrea Leadsom: There is no prohibition of alcohol in my Department. This includes ministerial and official private offices.

Banks: Pay

Alison McGovern: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent representations he has made to institutions of the EU on the cap on bank bonuses.

Andrea Leadsom: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave today to the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent (Nick Smith).

Buildings

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much has been spent on refurbishing (a) gymnasium and leisure facilities, (b) cafeteria and (c) interior decoration in (i) his Department and (ii) buildings owned by his Department in (A) 2013 and (B) 2014 to date.

Andrea Leadsom: None.
	Under the terms of the PFI agreement signed under the previous Administration all lifecycle and maintenance works are carried out by the hard service contractor as part of their contractual obligations; this includes interior decoration and refurbishment.

Employment

Karl McCartney: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent estimate he has made of the level of employment.

Priti Patel: There are record numbers of people in work, and since the coalition came into power employment has increased by 1.8 million. The latest data shows unemployment falling at the fastest annual pace for more than 25 years, and the largest fall in youth unemployment ever on record. Over 2 million private sector jobs have been created since early 2010, meaning that for every public sector job lost over five have been created in the private sector.

Fossil Fuels

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will request the Financial Policy Committee (FPC) of the Bank of England to provide them with their most recent assessment of risks to UK financial stability arising from investment in high-carbon assets; and if he will place in the Library that request and the FPC response.

Andrea Leadsom: On 8 July 2014, Mark Carney, the Governor of the Bank of England, sent a letter to the Environmental Audit Committee (EAC). In the letter he stated that the FPC's current assessment of the risks to financial stability were set out in the latest Financial Stability Report which was published on 26 June 2014. That assessment showed that the FPC did not consider investment in high-carbon assets to be a material risk to financial stability at that time. However, Governor Carney did reassure the EAC that the FPC will continue to monitor a range of threats in its regular risk assessment, and will seek to discuss with the Committee on Climate Change if its assessment of risk associated with a carbon bubble changes.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

EU External Trade: USA

Jim Sheridan: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he has made an assessment of the potential effect of automatic energy imports from the US to the EU arising from the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership negotiations on EU carbon emission targets.

Matthew Hancock: Concluding an ambitious and comprehensive EU-US trade deal that benefits UK consumers and business, especially small and medium sized enterprises, is a priority for the Government. Improved access to US exports of energy would form part of a successful Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership agreement, helping to diversify the EU’s energy sources, and is therefore an EU priority in the negotiations. Internal EU negotiations on carbon emissions targets are at an advanced stage and involve consideration of the energy profiles of the EU as a whole and of individual EU Member States across the full range of options. These options include the potential role of increased imports of gas, from the US and elsewhere, to help to reduce EU emissions levels in future decades.
	Factors such as the time needed to build new export terminals in the US and costs of liquefaction and transport mean that it is likely to be some years before EU Member States could import US gas in significant quantities. Recent events in Ukraine further underline the need for the EU to diversify its energy sources. Making full use of indigenous energy resources is also important for energy security. Here in the UK, the Government continues to work closely with industry to encourage further investment in domestic energy production, including oil, gas, nuclear and renewables.

Solar Power

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions he has had on the maintenance of the current 20-year duration support level for accredited solar PV plants and the Renewables Obligation order; what his policy is on this matter; and if he will make a statement.

Amber Rudd: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 1 September 2014, Official Report, columns 113-14W.

JUSTICE

Burglary: Reoffenders

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what the highest number of previous offences of burglary was for an individual convicted of a further offence of burglary without being sent to prison in each year since 2010;
	(2)  how many people who had committed 15 or more previous offences were not sent to prison on conviction for (a) burglary and (b) violence against the person in the latest period for which figures are available.

Michael Penning: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice gave him, by letter, on 10 July.

Offenders: Mental Illness

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will extend victims’ rights to victims of mentally disordered offenders to be more comparable with those rights afforded to victims in the criminal justice system.

Michael Penning: The Government's new Victims' Code, which came into force on 10 December 2013, strengthens the rights of victims of crime, including where the offender is mentally disordered. The Code provides victims with clearer entitlements and better tailors services to individual need. Under the Code, criminal justice agencies must provide enhanced services to victims of the most serious crime; persistently targeted victims; and vulnerable and intimidated victims.
	Since 2001, victims of specified sexual and violent offences where the offender receives a sentence of 12 months or more have been offered the Probation Victim Contact Scheme, which enables them to make representations about which licence conditions a prisoner should be subject to on release, and to be informed about key stages of sentence such as release on temporary licence and full release.
	The Victim Contact Scheme was extended by legislation to victims of mentally disordered offenders with restrictions in July 2005, and to victims of mentally disordered offenders without restrictions in November 2008.
	Since April 2014, there has been a presumption that victims of restricted mentally disordered offenders will be told if they are granted permission for escorted or unescorted leave from hospital for rehabilitative purposes.

Sussex Safer Roads Partnership

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what (a) financial, (b) staffing and (c) capacity-building support and assistance his Department has given to the Sussex Safer Roads Partnership in respect of (i) activities relating to Operation Crackdown and (ii) all other activities in each year since its inception;
	(2)  what metrics his Department applies to assess the performance of Sussex Safer Roads Partnership's contribution to Operation Crackdown;
	(3)  if he will publish his assessment of the effectiveness of the protocols governing Sussex Safer Roads Partnership's contribution to Operation Crackdown.

Michael Penning: The Ministry of Justice does not hold the information requested. Sussex Safer Roads Partnership receives no direct funding, or contributions from the Government. Operation Crackdown is a local police initiative and the Government has no involvement in measuring its effectiveness.

WALES

Correspondence

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he has any plans to increase the number of replies within his Department's working day standard; and if he will make a statement.

Alun Cairns: The Wales Office has a 15 working day target for responding to correspondence. The Office responded to 98% of all correspondence within the working day standard in 2013-14.

TRANSPORT

Driving: Eyesight

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate his Department has made of the number of drivers whose visual acuity was poor who were involved in road traffic accidents in each year since 2010.

Robert Goodwill: The numbers of motor vehicle drivers who were assigned with "uncorrected or defective eyesight" as a contributory factor by a police officer attending the scene of an accident are given in the following table, for each year since 2010.
	
		
			 Number of motor vehicle drivers with "uncorrected or defective eyesight" as a contributory factor in reported injury accidents, Great Britain 2010-13 
			  Number of accidents/percentage 
			  All accidents 
			 Contributory factor reported in accident1 Number Percentage 
			 Uncorrected, defective eyesight   
			 2010 227 0.18 
			 2011 245 0.20 
			 2012 245 0.21 
			 2013 231 0.21 
			 1 Includes only accidents where a police officer attended the scene and in which a contributory factor was reported. 
		
	
	The Department does not collect information on specific conditions such as "visual acuity", but it is likely to be captured by the broader contributory factor above.

Driving: Eyesight

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost is of road traffic accidents in the UK where poor visual acuity was a contributory factor in each year since 2010.

Robert Goodwill: The total costs of reported road accidents in which "uncorrected or defective eyesight" was reported as a contributory factor by a police officer attending the scene of the accident, in each of year since 2010 for Great Britain, are as follows:
	
		
			  Cost of reported road accident (£ million) 
			 2010 18.5 
			 2011 29.7 
			 2012 26.3 
			 2013 29.4 
		
	
	The Department does not collect information on specific conditions such as "visual acuity", but it is likely to be captured by the broader contributory factor above.
	These costs have been calculated using the values for prevented casualties and accidents given in tables A4.1.1 and A4.1.3 of the TAG data book
	www.gov.uk/government/publications/webtag-tag-data-book-may-2014
	which are used in the valuation of accident impacts in infrastructure investment and relevant policy business cases. They include the human costs of casualties and fatalities, lost economic output and other factors such as police, ambulance and medical costs but do not include any costs relating to delays arising from accidents. All the costs are given in 2010 prices.

Driving: Eyesight

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people were injured in road traffic accidents where the driver's visual acuity was found to be below the legal acceptable level in each year since 2010.

Robert Goodwill: The numbers of casualties in injury accidents where a motor vehicle driver was assigned contributory factory “uncorrected or defective eyesight” by a police officer at the scene of an accident are given in the following table, by casualty severity, for each year since 2010.
	
		
			 Number of motor vehicle drivers with "uncorrected or defective eyesight" as a contributory factor in reported injury accidents by casualty severity: GB 2010-13 
			 Contributory factor reported in accident1 Killed Seriously injured Slightly injured All casualties 
			 Uncorrected, defective eyesight     
			 2010 4 38 279 321 
			 2011 9 52 296 357 
			 2012 6 62 276 344 
			 2013 9 54 252 315 
			 1 Includes only accidents where a police officer attended the scene and in which a contributory factor was reported. 
		
	
	The Department does not collect information on specific conditions such as “visual acuity”, but it is likely to be captured by the broader contributory factor above.

Motorways: Accidents

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  if he will bring forward legislative proposals to prevent the Highways Agency keeping motorways out of action for any longer than necessary in the aftermath of incidents;
	(2)  what steps he is taking to improve the management of traffic in the aftermath of motorway incidents.

John Hayes: I agree that roads should be re-opened as quickly as possible following an incident to ensure disruption is kept to a minimum. Unfortunately, roads do need to be closed when critical infrastructure repairs cannot be performed whilst part of the carriageway remains open. In addition, when an incident has resulted in serious injury or a fatality, the police have a duty to conduct a thorough investigation in accordance with their recently revised Collision Investigation Manual.
	A review of the closure procedures for motorway incidents has been undertaken; this has been carried out jointly with the Home Office, Association of Chief Police Officers, Fire and Ambulance services, Department for Transport (DfT) and the Highways Agency, to identify what can collectively be achieved to reduce incident clear up times.
	The review, known as CLEAR {Collision, Lead, Evaluate, Act, Re-open) aims to reduce the time taken to re-open motorways following an incident and will minimise both the economic impact of closures and the delay experienced by road users.
	In addition, laser scanners are being operated by 27 police forces across England to significantly reduce the time taken to gather essential evidence at incident sites.
	At this time, there is no intention of introducing legislation as the Highways Agency is already mandated to reduce the time that motorways are subject to restrictions or closures following incidents.

Nuclear Installations

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on what dates the no-fly zones around nuclear facilities have been violated since May 2010; and what steps his Department has taken to ensure such violations do not occur in future.

Robert Goodwill: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) maintains a complaint log for three years. Since June 2011, it has received 12 complaints from onsite Security Guards about aircraft which they believe may have overflown their respective sites at low level. The dates of these incidents were:
	12 June 2011
	14 June 2011
	24 June 2011
	17 August 2011
	25 July 2012
	2 January 2013
	14 January 2013
	15 August 2013
	25 August 2013
	9 September 2013
	3 October 2013
	21 May 2014
	All these recorded incidents were investigated, but due to a lack of evidence the only case which led to a successful prosecution occurred on 25 August 2013 and involved the use of a small unmanned aerial vehicle.
	The need to report to the CAA all aircraft which appear to be low flying is written in the nuclear site’s security procedures manual. The successful prosecution demonstrates that the CAA investigates all such reported incidents and that it will take enforcement action when there is sufficient evidence available. In addition, both the CAA and the Department for Energy and Climate Change seek to learn what they can from the investigations into reported incidents.

Ragwort

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps the Highways Agency is taking to remove ragwort from (a) roadsides and (b) other land for which the Highways Agency is responsible.

John Hayes: The Highways Agency has an obligation to take account of ragwort and other injurious weeds growing on verges and other land for which it is responsible. In common with other landowners they are subject to the provisions of the Weeds Act 1959 as amended by the Ragwort Control Act 2003.
	On roadsides along the Strategic Road Network and other land under its control the Agency requires its service providers to follow the DEFRA Code of Practice to control ragwort. The code promotes a risk-based approach with targeted use of control measures in locations close to land used either for animal grazing or fodder production. The principle measures used by the Agency are spot treatment with herbicide in spring and early summer followed by hand pulling of the weed later in the season.

Railway Signals

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what recent discussions he has had with Network Rail on improving rail signalling;
	(2)  what future discussions he has planned with Network Rail on improving rail signalling.

Claire Perry: There have been no recent discussions with Network Rail specifically about signalling improvements. The Secretary of State and ministerial colleagues will continue to meet with Network Rail to discuss a range of issues including improving rail signalling.
	Network Rail is funded, as part of its five-year Control Period 5 settlement, to maintain and upgrade its signalling systems. The Office of Rail Regulation will monitor Network Rail's performance in the delivery of its Control Period 5 objectives.

Railways: Birmingham

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will initiate a study into adding a halt on the Lichfield Trent Valley to Redditch cross-city line at Curzon Street in Birmingham adjacent to the proposed Birmingham High Speed 2 (HS2) station to enhance connectivity with HS2 and with Birmingham City University and Millennium Point; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Goodwill: The Secretary of State for Transport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire Dales (Mr McLoughlin), is seeking powers through the Hybrid Bill to construct the HS2 scheme as set out in that Bill. This does not include a new station adjacent to Curzon Street as proposed. There are a range of potential infrastructure schemes, such as new stations, which could further increase connections for the travelling public above and beyond the scheme set out in the Bill. The Department is not evaluating the case for such proposals and will therefore not undertake a study on a new station to serve Curzon Street. The Department will continue to work with local authorities who are taking the lead in identifying and evaluating options for wider connectivity that will extend the benefits offered by HS2.

Railways: North of England

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the passenger figures are for each of the last five years for the Transpennine Cleethorpes to Manchester service; and what information is held on the number of people who (a) alight and (b) board in (i) Doncaster and (ii) Sheffield.

Claire Perry: The Department for Transport holds this information on a commercially confidential basis. However, as I stated in the debate of 16 July 2014, Official Report, column 984, I am happy to consider whether the Department can release such information and I will meet with the hon. Member and other hon. Members for the local area shortly.

Railways: WiFi

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the annual investment of each franchised train operating company in wi-fi services has been since the start of each franchise agreement with his Department.

Claire Perry: The Department cannot release this information as it is commercially sensitive.

Roads: Accidents

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many road traffic accidents there were per 100,000 of the population in (a) the UK, (b) London and (c) Barnet in each of the last five years.

Robert Goodwill: The numbers of reported personal injury road traffic accidents per 100,000 population in (a) Great Britain, (b) London and (c) Barnet for the years 2009 to 2013 are shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Number of reported personal injury road traffic accidents in (a) Great Britain (b) London and (c) Barnet per 100,000 population: 2009-13 
			  2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 
			 (a) Great Britain 270 253 246 235 223 
			 (b) London 234 300 298 290 274 
			 (c) Barnet 317 343 311 280 269

Roads: Accidents

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many motor vehicle accidents occurred in (a) Preston constituency, (b) Preston and (c) Lancashire in each month in 2013.

Robert Goodwill: The numbers of reported personal injury motor vehicle accidents in (a) Preston constituency, (b) Preston and (c) Lancashire in each month of 2013 are shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Number of reported personal injury accidents involving at least one motor vehicle1 in Preston constituency, Preston and Lancashire: 2013 
			  (a) Preston constituency (b) Preston (c) Lancashire 
			 January 36 58 377 
			 February 25 37 375 
			 March 34 47 375 
			 April 38 66 363 
			 May 33 43 377 
			 June 34 51 424 
			 July 38 58 439 
			 August 30 40 392 
			 September 48 59 388 
			 October 44 66 437 
			 November 38 51 476 
			 December 53 81 406 
			 Total 451 657 4,829 
			 1 Excludes pedal cycles, horse riders, mobility scooters and trams

Roads: North Yorkshire

Andrew Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much has been invested in road infrastructure in (a) Harrogate and Knaresborough constituency and (b) North Yorkshire in each of the last four years.

Robert Goodwill: The Highways Agency is responsible for the motorway and strategic trunk road network. There have been no Major Road Schemes in the Harrogate and Knaresborough constituency during the last four years.
	The table shows the investment in the two Major Road Schemes that are in the North Yorkshire area. Please note the 14/15 expenditure includes actual spend to the end of June 2014 and a forecast up to and including the end of March 2015.
	
		
			 £ million 
			  Actual Forecast  
			 Scheme 11/12 12/13 13/14 14/15 Estimated total out-turn cost 
			 A1 Dishforth to Leeming 80.4 6.0 1-5.9 1.9 311 
			 A1 Dishforth to Barton 0.1 3.1 35.7 90.8 380 
			 1 The -5.9 reported in 13/14, is made up of a change in accounting policy and a reduction in the provision for post construction activity. 
		
	
	The Highways Agency does not separately identify the investment on its roads by constituency area. The Highways Agency has invested approximately £33 million on safety and improvement schemes, renewal of carriageway surfaces and repairs to structures in the North Yorkshire region within the last four years. The breakdown of investment by financial year is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Investment (£ million) 
			 2010/11 5.211 
			 2011/12 4.261 
			 2012/13 10.791 
			 2013/14 12.438 
		
	
	For the local road network the Department for Transport provides capital funding to local highway authorities for maintenance. The Harrogate and Knaresborough constituency falls within North Yorkshire county council’s area of responsibility and therefore we do not allocate any funds directly to that area for local road infrastructure. Over the four year period from 2011 North Yorkshire county council’s allocation is:
	
		
			  Allocation (£ million) 
			 2011/12 25.252 
			 2012/13 24.065 
			 2013/141 29.002 
			 2014/152 27.855 
			 1 Includes the top up announced in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement 2012 and the Wet Weather funding paid in March 2014. 2 Includes the top up announced in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement 2012 and the Pothole Fund. 
		
	
	The Department for Transport is funding one local major scheme in North Yorkshire, the Bedale Aiskew Leeming Bar Bypass which has £10.760 million of funding in 2014/15.

South West Trains

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the punctuality of South West Trains passenger rail services in each month since South West Trains formally entered into a deep alliance with Network Rail in April 2012.

Claire Perry: The Public Performance Measure is a measurement of train punctuality against the planned services for the day. The Department regularly monitors each operator’s performance. This includes regular meetings with their senior management where performance figures are scrutinised and challenged. South West Trains publish their performance by four-week period at:
	http://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/our-performance.aspx.
	For comparative performance figures, please see:
	http://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/displayreport/report/html/d9ef4972-9eec-486b-b40b-901f94548252

CABINET OFFICE

Correspondence

Simon Kirby: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether he has any plans to increase the number of replies within his Department's working day standard; and if he will make a statement.

Francis Maude: My Department aims to respond to all correspondence within 15 working days.
	Guidance on handling correspondence from Members of Parliament, Peers, MEPs and Members of devolved Administrations will be updated in due course.
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/61196/guide-handling-gov-correspondence.pdf

Food Banks

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the oral answer from the right hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, to the hon. Member for York Central of 17 July 2014, what the details are of the joint visits made by Government Ministers and the Church to examine the role of food banks; what the Government's policies are to reduce the number of people living in poverty and dependent on food banks; and if he will make a statement.

Brooks Newmark: Discussion on the use of food banks involves various Government Departments. I lead on Government's engagement with civil society organisations. There has been an extremely impressive response by civil society and faith groups to support vulnerable people. Following the meeting of my hon. Friend the Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (Mr Hurd) with a regional group of Church leaders to listen to and discuss the Church's views on food banks, I will be meeting with three more such groups in the near future.

Jobseeker's Allowance: Thirsk

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the current claimant rate is for jobseeker's allowance in Thirsk and Malton constituency.

Brooks Newmark: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Caron Walker, dated September 2014
	In the absence of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the current claimant rate is for jobseeker's allowance in Thirsk and Malton constituency. (207427)
	The ONS compiles data on the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance from the Jobcentre Plus Administrative System.
	In July 2014 the proportion of people in Thirsk and Malton aged 16 to 64 claiming Jobseeker's Allowance was 1.0%.
	National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:
	http://www.nomisweb.co.uk

HOME DEPARTMENT

British Nationality

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many immigrants to the UK have received full UK citizenship in each year since 2010.

James Brokenshire: The information requested is given in the following table:
	
		
			 Grants of British Citizenship 2010 to 2013 
			  Grants 
			 2010 195,046 
			 2011 177,785 
			 2012 194,209 
			 2013 207,989 
			 Source: Table cz_02 (Citizenship tables), Immigration Statistics January to March 2014 
		
	
	The latest Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas granted (by category and by individual nationality) are published in the quarterly Immigration Statistics release, which is available from the Library of the House and on the Department’s website at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release

EU Justice and Home Affairs

Jacob Rees-Mogg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of whether Framework Decision 2002/465/JHA requires the competent authorities of member states to have discretion to establish joint investigation teams under that Framework Decision rather than under the Second Additional Protocol to the European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters, where that Protocol is available.

Karen Bradley: A full impact assessment has been conducted on Framework Decision 2002/465/JHA. Details of this assessment can be found in Command Paper 8897.
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/326698/41670_Cm_8897_Accessible.pdf,
	published on 3 July 2014.
	Framework Decision 2002/465/JHA does not specify that this measure must be used above other frameworks allowing for joint investigation teams. However, this is the only instrument that allows for a joint investigation team to be formed with every other member state.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to reply to the letter to her dated 17 June 2014 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Ms S Rasheed.

James Brokenshire: I wrote to the right hon. Member on 21 July 2014.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to reply to the letter to her dated 16 June 2014 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr F M Bondoki.

James Brokenshire: I wrote to the right hon. Member on 4 July 2014.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to reply to the letter to her dated 10 June 2014 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Ms Zabada Begum.

James Brokenshire: I wrote to the right hon. Member on 25 July 2014.

Money Laundering: EU Law

Jacob Rees-Mogg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many requests for information that were fulfilled by other EU member states were made by the UK's financial intelligence unit under (a) Council Decision 2000/642/JHA and (b) other means of co-operation in each of the last five years;
	(2)  what assessment she has made of the efficacy of information exchange with other EU member states on the relevant financial matters that would be likely to continue through other means should the UK cease to be bound by Council Decision 2000/642/JHA on 1 December 2014;
	(3)  what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Egmont Group in promoting and enabling international co-operation between financial intelligence units.

Karen Bradley: A full impact assessment has been conducted on Council Decision 2000/642/JHA. Details of this assessment can be found in Command Paper 8897.
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/326698/41670_Cm_8897_Accessible.pdf
	published on 3 July 2014.
	The alternative methods open to the UK to exchange information with other EU member states on relevant financial matters are not considered to be as effective as cooperation under the measure.
	The UK is an active participant in the Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) and shares information with other Egmont members. The UKFIU experience in sharing financial intelligence through Egmont is positive and is viewed as vital in the fight against money laundering, terrorism financing and other predicate offences.
	However, Council Decision 2000/642/JHA provides additional benefits that are not available to Egmont members. For example, if we ceased to be bound by the Framework Decision we might lose access to FIU.net, the IT network that facilitates information exchange between EU FIUs.
	The number of requests made via Council decision 2000/642/JHA and by other means over the last five years is not available. However, the figures for the period 2011 to 2013 were as follows:
	
		
			  2011 2012 2013 
			 2000/642/JHA (Including FIU.Net) 448 338 471 
			 Other 292 290 318 
			 Total 740 628 789

Money Laundering: EU Law

Jacob Rees-Mogg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the implications for the UK of possible future interpretations and applications of Article 4(3) of Council Decision 2000/642/JHA by the Court of Justice of the EU should the UK continue to be bound by that Decision after 1 December 2014.

Karen Bradley: A full impact assessment has been conducted on Council Decision 2000/642/JHA. Details of this assessment can be found in Command Paper 8897.
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/326698/41670_Cm_8897_Accessible.pdf
	published on 3 July 2014.
	The Government has considered the potential impacts of CJEU jurisdiction very carefully in deciding which pre-Lisbon police and criminal justice measures it was in the interests of the UK to rejoin.

Offences Against Children: Internet

Jacob Rees-Mogg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the potential effect on the implementation of the UK's strategy against indecent images of children online of placing that strategy within the full jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the EU, including its human rights jurisprudence, should the UK remain bound by Council Decision 2000/375/JHA after 1 December 2014.

Karen Bradley: A full impact assessment has been conducted on Framework Decision 2000/375/JHA. Details of this assessment can be found in Command Paper 8897
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/326698/41670_Cm_8897_Accessible.pdf
	published on 3 July 2014.
	The Government has considered the potential impacts of CJEU jurisdiction very carefully in deciding which of the pre-Lisbon police and criminal justice measures it is in the interests of the UK to rejoin. Article 72 of treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) makes clear that the maintenance of law and order and the safeguarding of internal security is a responsibility for member states.
	Article 276 of the TFEU states that the CJEU shall have no jurisdiction to review the validity or proportionality of operations carried out by the police or other law enforcement services of a member state, or the exercise of responsibilities incumbent upon member states with regard to the maintenance of law and order and the safeguarding of internal security.
	The Government’s decision to seek to opt in to Framework Decision 2000/375/JHA will therefore not bring the Government’s strategy in tackling indecent images of children under the jurisdiction of the CJEU or any action taken by UK law enforcement pursuant to that strategy. The UK is fully compliant with this Council Decision, and we assess the risk of an adverse judgment in this area to be low.

Organised Crime: EU Law

Jacob Rees-Mogg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department through what means the UK can take part in the sharing of advice and best practice between EU member states on fighting organised crime other than being bound by Joint Action 97/827/JHA.

Karen Bradley: A full impact assessment has been conducted on Joint Action 97/827/JHA. Details of this assessment can be found in Command Paper 8897.
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/326698/41670_Cm_8897_Accessible.pdf
	published on 3 July 2014.
	There are no alternative methods open to the UK to share advice and best practice collectively between all EU Member States on matters covered by this Joint Action that are considered to be as effective as cooperation under the measure. This measure increases UK influence both in terms of practical cooperation in the fight against organised crime and EU action in this field. The UK could continue to share advice and best practice with other EU Member States on a bilateral basis if it was not bound by this Joint Action, but this would not be as effective.

Passports

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the volume of overseas applications for passports has been in each month since her Department assumed responsibility for such applications.

James Brokenshire: The following table shows the number of overseas passport applications received by Her Majesty's Passport Office each month since it assumed responsibility for such applications.
	
		
			  Number of overseas applications received1 
			 2012  
			 December 145 
			 2013  
			 January 1,014 
			 February 2,401 
			 March 2,767 
			 April 3,543 
			 May 4,662 
			 June 5,862 
			 July 7,053 
			 August 7,216 
			 September 11,035 
			 October 13,832 
			 November 10,881 
			 December 12,324 
			 2014  
			 January 26,897 
			 February 43,327 
			 March 40,935 
			 1 HMPO took responsibility for overseas passports applications in April 2011, commenced the repatriation of the printing of overseas passports in summer 2011, but only commenced repatriating application processing in December 2012 with that repatriation completed in February 2014.

Schengen Agreement: ICT

Jacob Rees-Mogg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what assessment she has made of the possibility of the UK connecting to the Schengen Information System II via a bilateral treaty with the EU instead of remaining bound by Decision 2007/533/JHA;
	(2)  what steps the Government plans to take to ensure that UK authorities are not overburdened by alerts issued by other EU member states in the event that UK connects to the Schengen Information Systems II;
	(3)  what steps the UK authorities would take to carry out the specific checks required under Chapter VIII of Decision 2007/533/JHA if the UK connects to the Schengen Information System II;
	(4)  what steps UK authorities would take to carry out discreet checks required under Chapter VIII of Decision 2007/533/JHA if the UK connects to the Schengen Information System II;
	(5)  what information the UK would be required to pass on to other EU member states under Chapter VII of Decision 2007/533/JHA if the UK connects to the Schengen Information System II.

Karen Bradley: A full impact assessment has been conducted on Council Decision 2007/533/JHA. Details of this assessment can be found in Command Paper 8897:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/326698/41670_Cm_8897_Accessible.pdf
	published on 3 July 2014.
	No viable alternative mechanisms for connecting to SIS II have been identified. The Commission has been clear during negotiations that a bilateral treaty between the UK and the EU on any matters falling within the scope of the block opt-out is not feasible. Furthermore, on 16 January 2013 President Barroso responded to a European Parliamentary Question from Daniel Hannan MEP on this matter and stated that
	‘the Commission sees no room for the conclusion of international agreements between the EU and the United Kingdom on such matters.’
	SISII will be integrated into existing UK law enforcement infrastructure to keep to a minimum any additional burden. In addition, the UK’s central office for managing SIS II requests (the SIRENE Bureau) has been established within the National Crime Agency (NCA) to act specifically as the UK's single point of contact for all exchanges of information relating to SISII alerts. On 21 July 2014, the Home Secretary commenced the proportionality provisions in the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. This includes a proportionality filter in relation to SISII Article 26 alerts (European Arrest Warrants).
	The filter will enable the weeding out of the most trivial European arrest warrants, ensuring resources are dedicated to the most serious criminals and that the police are not overburdened with Article 26 alerts. In terms of other SISII alerts, they only require the UK to notify the issuing member state that the individual has come to our attention. Therefore, there is expected to be a minimal impact on existing resources. The UK has made no distinction between the definitions used in Article 36 (chapter VIII) as concerns discreet and specific checks. Any UK law enforcement check that matches a SISII Article 36 alert will be coordinated through the NCA’s SIRENE Bureau, and the issuing member state will be notified in accordance with the SISII Council Decision. UK law enforcement agencies will use Article 34 alerts (chapter VII) for locating witnesses, persons summoned to appear in criminal proceedings and others.
	The accompanying information will include a combination of name, age, sex, colour and height of the individual. The information submitted in response to Article 34 alerts from other member states will be in the form of supplementary information and in most cases this will just include the individual’s place of abode.